Check Your Work

Create a README.txt File

A README file contains information about other files in an assignment or set of software files. It is a plain text file and is where the instructor starts when grading assignments. Turn in a singleREADME.txt file like the following for every assignment with programming projects. The instructions for each part follow the example file.

README.txt file name: The name of the README.txt file must start with README. The file extension must be .txt, indicating a plain text file. I may deduct points from your assignment score if you use a wrong file name or extension.

Author: After the label Author: put your name on the first line of the file. I may deduct points from your assignment score if you do not use your name.

Email: Your preferred email contact address.

Projects Partner: Your partner for the programming projects, which starts with assignment 3. Please do NOT record partner names for in-class exercises in the README.txt file.

OS: Operating system of the computer you work on, such as Windows Mac OS X, Linux, etc..

Asn#: The number of the assignment.

Status: Your assessment of how complete is your assignment. Say "completed" if the assignment is done. Otherwise, describe the current state of the assignment. Claiming you are done when you are not, or not accurately describing the status, may reduce your score even further.

Files: Name of each file submitted followed by a brief description.

Hours spent: Record the estimated hours you spent on the homework assignment (not the work you do in class). Use decimal numbers only, such as 6.5. Do not use minutes or fractions such as 1/2. Label the hours as shown and put the estimated hours on the same line as the label. Include all three entries for hours, even if you do not work with a partner.

Extra credit: Under the label Extra credit: list any extra credit you attempted for the assignment.

Other information: If the assignment asks for other information to be included in your README.txt file, then label it clearly and place it after the other information. For example, this is where you place a URL.

Note to Mac Users: You can use TextEdit to save your README.txt file. However, you need to set up TextEdit to save files using plain text and not RTF. You will not get full credit unless you use plain text. For instructions on setting TextEdit to use plain text, see: How to Use TextEdit Plain Text Mode by Default in Mac OS X.

Archive Your Files (Usually Optional)

To make it easier to work with multiple files and directories, you may zip (archive) your files. Archiving is usually an optional step for an assignment. Archiving your files means to create a file containing one or more files in a compressed format. Most operating systems include an archiving (ZIP) tool. Also, you can get a third-party tool such as 7-zip.

When submitting files for grading in an archived format, you need to include all your files, including README.txt, in the archive. The archive type must be ZIP and the archived file must end in a .zip extension and contain only letters and numbers. Do NOT use special characters like spaces, #, : or $ in the name of the zip file or any folder or file name. Also, do not put zip files inside of zip files.

Submit Your Files to Canvas

Submit the files using Canvas. After logging in to Canvas, click the Assignments link and then click the link for the correct assignment number. To upload files, click the Add Attachments button for the assignment. For more information, see the FAQ on, "How do I upload my assignment files?"

Do not submit Word or Excel documents unless specifically allowed in the assignment instructions. Failure to follow this requirement will result in a lower grade.

Frequently Asked Question

In Case of Difficulty

If Canvas is not available, or is giving you trouble, then contact the instructor for assistance. If the hour is late and your assignment is due early the next day, then email the instructor with a description of the problem and attach your assignment, with a copy to yourself. Also, bring your assignment to class in digital form so you can try to upload before class.

You will get a 0 unless you submit your assignment using Canvas. Thus, the instructor will work with you to get your assignment submitted correctly. However, the final responsibility for submitting assignments to Canvas on time rests with the student. Please plan ahead in case of difficulties.